Shotgun for competitive clay target shooting

ABSTRACT

A shotgun includes a stock, a receiver and a barrel group. The stock has a butt end and an opposite second end. The receiver which is for containing a moving parts group, has a rear end and a forward end and is releasably mountable at the rear end by a releasable coupler to the second end of the stock. The barrel group has a discharge end and an opposite loading end. The loading end is releasably mountable by a pivotable coupler to the forward end of the receiver. The moving parts group, when mounted in the receiver, contain all of the moving parts between a trigger and a firing pin or pins in moving operation relative to the receiver required during firing of the shotgun. The releasable coupler includes a manually operable coupler release. The coupler release is manually actuable so that the releasable coupler mounts the receiver to, or demounts the receiver from, the stock upon tool-less, hand actuation by a user of the coupler release, that is, upon manual actuation by the user without the need to use a tool, such as a screwdriver, to assist in operating the coupler release. The receiver may be quickly removed by hand from the stock and quickly replaced with a spare receiver containing a spare moving parts group.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/217,711 filed Jul. 12, 2000 entitled Shotgun ForCompetitive Clay Target Shooting.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] This invention relates to the field of sporting shotguns asopposed to those used primarily for hunting, and in particular to asporting shotgun for competitive clay target shooting.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] In conventional clay target shooting competitions using forexample Perazzi™ or Krieghoff™ sporting shotguns, a failure of a guncomponent while on the firing line will usually mean defaulting in thatround of the competition because under the competition's rules, if a gunmisfires, you have only 5 minutes in which to effect a repair.

[0004] In such instances it would be advantageous, and it is one objectof the present invention to provide, a quickly interchangeable shotguncomponent which contains virtually all of the moving parts of a shotgunso that no matter which internal mechanism failed, the entire shotguncomponent may be removed and quickly replaced with a spare componentotherwise referred to herein as a spare parts group.

[0005] Thus what is provided in the present invention is a modifiedstock which at the butt end is modified so that the user may selectbetween a completely rigid stock or one having a recoil absorber, andwhich at its receiver end is modified to incorporate a quick releasecoupling for mating with the shotgun receiver. It is a further object toprovide a modified shotgun receiver containing all of the moving partswhich may be replaced by a spare parts group and which is furthermodified to allow selective release of the receiver from the shotgunbarrel group by an actuator on the lower surface of the receiver forwardof the trigger housing.

[0006] In the prior art, applicant is aware of hunting shotguns, forexample those made by Browning and sold under the trade mark Citori. Oneexample is shown partially cut-away in FIG. 1a. As may be seen, in theCitori example, the shotgun stock is mounted to the receiver by means ofa bolt inserted from the butt end along a bore in the stock so as toprotrude from the receiver mating end of the stock. The bolt threadsinto a threaded hole or bore in the aft end of the receiver and istightened, for example by means of a screwdriver, so as to draw thereceiver snugly into mating with the stock. A cover plate is screwedinto place to cover access to the bore in the stock.

SUMMARY

[0007] The shotgun of the present invention as defined herein isunderstood and intended to include the shotgun as an assembled whole,the shotgun as a partially or fully disassembled kit or system, and eachseparate novel part thereof. Consequently the shotgun of the presentinvention may be summarized as including a stock, a receiver and abarrel group. The stock has a butt end and an opposite second end. Thereceiver which is for containing a moving parts group, has a rear endand a forward end and is releasably mountable at the rear end by areleasable coupler to the second end of the stock. The barrel group hasa discharge end and an opposite loading end. The loading end isreleasably mountable by a pivotable coupler to the forward end of thereceiver. The moving parts group, when mounted in the receiver, containall of the moving parts between a trigger and a firing pin or pins inmoving operation relative to the receiver required during firing of theshotgun. The releasable coupler includes a manually operable couplerrelease. The coupler release is manually actuable so that the releasablecoupler mounts the receiver to, or demounts the receiver from, the stockupon tool-less, hand actuation by a user of the coupler release, thatis, upon manual actuation by the user without the need to use a tool,such as a screwdriver, to assist in operating the coupler release.Consequently the receiver may be quickly removed by hand from the stockand quickly replaced with a spare receiver containing a spare movingparts group.

[0008] In one embodiment, the releasable coupler may comprise a rigidelongate member releasably mountable into a receiving socket. The rigidelongate member may threadably mount into the receiving socket. Inparticular, in one embodiment the receiving socket is a rigid tubularmember mountable into a bore in the second end of the stock, and therigid elongate member is mountable to the rear end of the receiver so asto cantilever the rigid elongate member from the rear end of thereceiver into co-axial alignment with the tubular member when thetubular member is mounted to the stock and the stock is mounted to thereceiver.

[0009] The rigid elongate member may be a bolt-like member threadablymountable to the tubular member. The bolt-like member may for example bea bolt having an interrupted thread. Such a bolt may have oppositelydisposed parallel planar lands along thread-disengaging portions of alength of the bolt. The lands may extend contiguously between oppositelydisposed threaded surfaces along thread-engaging portions of the lengthof the bolt. The tubular member may have an interrupted thread innersurface for threaded engagement with the thread-engaging portions of thebolt. The threaded walls of the tubular member may have aperturestherein. The apertures are aligned and sized so that as the bolt isrotated relative to the tubular member while in threaded engagement withthe tubular member, the thread-engaging portions are rotated out ofthread engaging radial alignment with the threaded inner surface of thethreaded walls and into radial alignment with the apertures in thethreaded walls, thereby aligning the thread-disengaging portions of thebolt with the threaded inner surfaces of the threaded walls. The bolt isthereby disengaged from the tubular member and may be withdrawntherefrom.

[0010] The shotgun receiver may further comprise a low-locking barrelgroup release latch mounted to a low side of the receiver. The low sideof the receiver is defined as corresponding to a trigger side of thereceiver. The release latch cooperates with a locking mechanism on thebarrel group for releasable locking of the barrel group on the pivotablecoupler. When the release latch is locked onto the barrel lockingmechanism a round in the barrel is aligned for firing engagement withthe firing pin or pins in receiver.

[0011] The release latch may have a latch actuating trigger mounted tothe low side of the receiver so as to extend therefrom for manualactuation by a user. The latch actuating trigger may be mounted adjacenta trigger guard of the receiver. The latch actuating trigger may beslidably mounted to the low side of the receiver.

[0012] The butt end of the stock may have a slide channel formed thereinin generally co-planar alignment with a longitudinal axis of a barrel ofthe barrel group. The stock may then further include a recoil absorbingslide resiliently slidably mounted in the slide channel. The slide mayhave a shoulder pad mounted at an exposed end of the slide, that is, theexposed end protruding from the butt end of the stock. The slide mayhave an upper portion extending from the slide channel along an uppersurface of the stock, for example generally opposite a handgrip of thestock. A slide cover member may be mounted to the slide and may extendgenerally the length of the stock and along the upper surface of thestock. The slide cover slides over the upper surface of the stock as theslide slides in the slide channel so as to absorb recoil upon firing ofthe shotgun. The slide cover may be conformally shaped so as to smoothlyconform to the contours of the stock. A rigid insert may be providedwhich is slidable over an exposed portion of the exposed end of theslide when the slide is fully extended from the butt end of the stock soas to disable operation of the slide.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013]FIG. 1 is a partially exploded perspective view of the shotgun ofthe present invention,

[0014]FIG. 1a is an exploded, partially cut-away perspective view of aprior art shotgun.

[0015]FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the butt stock of FIG. 1 showing therecoil mechanism in operation,

[0016]FIG. 3 is, in partially exploded view, the butt stock of FIG. 2with the recoil mechanism disabled,

[0017]FIG. 3a is, in elevation view, the recoil disabling mechanism ofFIG. 3,

[0018]FIG. 4 is an exploded isometric view illustrating the couplingmechanism between forestock and trigger housing of the shotgun of FIG.1,

[0019]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view along line 5-5 in FIG. 4,

[0020]FIG. 6 is a partially exploded isometric view illustrating thetrigger housing and the coupling bolt and male coupler of FIG. 4,

[0021]FIGS. 7 and 7a are isometric views of the break-open mechanism inthe forestock.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

[0022] As seen in FIG. 1, the improved shotgun 10 of the presentinvention has a stock 12, a receiver 14 and a barrel group 16.

[0023] As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, stock 12 may have at its buttend a shoulder pad 18 mounted to a rigid base plate 20. Base plate 20 isrigidly and orthogonally mounted to internal slide arm 22. Slide arm 22slides within a channel in stock body 24 along a plane generallyvertically bisecting stock 12 so as to cooperate with a resilient shockabsorber such as conventionally known in the art housed within stockbody 24. Slide body 26 is also rigidly orthogonally mounted to baseplate 20 so as to extend co-extensively along an upper surface of stockbody 24. Slide body 26 slides over interface 27 relative to stock body24 when stock body 24 recoils in direction A due to recoil followingfiring of the shotgun. Slide body 26 is shaped conformally with stockbody 24 so that with slide arm 22 in its normally extendednon-compressed position, other than a hairline at interface 27, slidebody 26 and stock body 24 appear as a unitary whole in the shape of aconventional rigid shotgun stock.

[0024] As better seen in FIG. 3a, U-shaped insert 28 may be slid indirection B into the cavity between base plate 20 and the adjacent endof plate 30 mounted to stock body 24. Channel 32 in U-shaped insert 28slides snugly over slide arm 22 until the upper ends of U-shaped insert28 abut the lower surface of slide body 26 so as to completely coverslide arm 22. With U-shaped insert 28 so mounted, the operation of slidearm 22, that is, the operation of the resilient recoil absorber, isdisabled so that stock 12 performs as a conventional rigid stock. Theouter surface of U-shaped insert 28 is shaped so as to conform to thelateral cross-sectional shape of stock body 24 and base plate 20.U-shaped insert 28 may be releasably locked into place between baseplate 20 and end plate 30 by means of a friction fit assisted by, forexample, a spring-loaded ball bearing latch mechanism wherein ballbearing 34 resiliently mounted in end plate 30 releasably engages acorresponding cup or aperture 36 in U-shaped insert 28.

[0025] As seen in FIG. 4, at the opposite end of stock body 24 oppositeto plate 30, a female receiver coupler 38 is mounted into forestock 12a. Forestock 12 a is longitudinally bored so as to snugly receive sleeve40 of coupler 38 journalled into and along the bore. Sleeve 40 is itselfhollow having a pair of oppositely disposed cutouts 42 along its lengthdefining therebetween an opposed facing pair of threaded lands 44.Sleeve 40 is rigidly mounted to annular collar 46 so as to extendperpendicularly therefrom. Annular collar 46 is shaped and sized so thatits outer perimeter is conformal to the end surface of forestock 12 awhen sleeve 40 is mounted within the longitudinal bore of forestock 12a.

[0026] In the illustrated embodiment, not intended to be limiting, thealignment of sleeve 40 within the bore of forestock 12 a is assisted andmaintained by fiberglassing the sleeve into the bore, assisted by thefiberglass engaging longitudinal grooves 40 a in sleeve 40.

[0027] The cylindrical aperture 46 a of collar 46 is coaxial with, andof corresponding diameter to, the internal cylindrical cavity of sleeve40 so as to receive therethrough male coupling shaft 48 when inserted indirection C into sleeve 40 along axis D.

[0028] Male coupling shaft 48 is in the shape of a two sided cant, thatis, when viewed in cross-section in a plane perpendicular to axis D,shaft 48 is obround with the two parallel sides of the obroundcorresponding to a pair of parallel planar faces 50 and the oppositelydisposed curved ends of the obround corresponding to a pair of threadeduniformly curved surfaces 52. A base 54 is mounted to the non-threadedend of shaft 48.

[0029] Male coupling shaft 48 may be inserted or removed from sleeve 40when shaft 48 is rotated about axis D, so that threaded surfaces 52 arealigned with, so as to be exposed through, cutouts 42. The result isthat the threads on threaded surfaces 52 are disengaged from the threadson threaded lands 44. Thus, shaft 48 is inserted in direction C intosleeve 40 by aligning planar faces 50 so as to slide over threaded lands44 until shaft 48 is completely journalled within sleeve 40. Shaft 48may then be rotated in direction E about axis D by 90 degrees so as tomate the threads on surfaces 52 with the threads on lands 44. With thethreads so engaged, the receiver coupler pair, which mates male couplingshaft 48 to female receiver coupler 38, are releasably locked together.

[0030] In one embodiment, a pin 53 or like protrusion seen in FIG. 5 onbase 54 engages, so as to slide along, arcuate groove 55 on collar 46 asbase 54 is mated against collar 46. The end 55 a of groove 55 arrestsrotation of base 54 relative to collar 46 by engaging pin 53. End 55 aacts as a stop to prevent over-tightening and to ensure and ease correctalignment of the receiver coupler pair once mated so that locking 56aligns with locking aperture 58.

[0031] Spring loaded locking pin 56 in collar 46 releasably engagescorresponding locking aperture 58 on base 54 when the threads on thepair of curved surfaces 52 and the pair of threaded lands 44 areuniformly aligned. To release locking pin 56 from engagement fromlocking aperture 58, locking pin 56 is retracted in direction F by auser pulling back on thumb operated button 60, mounted adjacent theupper surface of annular collar 46, against the return biasing force ofresilient spring 51 housed within a spring housing 62. It is understoodthat, although spring housing 62 is shown as being exposed on the uppersurface of forestock 12 a, that spring housing 62 may also be recessedinto a corresponding cavity in forestock 12 a so that for aestheticpurposes, only thumb operated button 60 is exposed on the upper surfaceof forestock 12 a.

[0032] As seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, receiver 14 is a housing comprisingbase 54, left side wall 64, right side wall 66, the trigger housing 68,and the internal firing mechanism between trigger 70 and the firing pins71. Except as set out herein, the internal firing mechanism may haveparts from a conventional receiver assembly such as sold by Browning™under the trademark Citori as would be well known to, and wellunderstood by, a person skilled in the art. A Browning Citori shotgun isshown in exploded view in FIG. 1a with the firing mechanism partiallycut-away. On each of the left and right side walls, a circular recess 72may be provided with provides no function other than to receive anembossed coin bearing the applicant's trademark.

[0033] Male coupling shaft 48 is itself hollow so as to receivejournalled therethrough a threaded bolt 74. Bolt 74 is journalledthrough borehole 48 a in shaft 48 so as to protrude through aperture 54a in base 54. The threaded end of bolt 74 protruding through aperture 54a mounts the internal firing mechanism rigidly between the side wallsand rearwardly against base 54. In one embodiment, side walls 64 and 66are rigidly mounted to base 54 by bolting corresponding side walls tothe corresponding flanges of base 54 using bolt holes 54 b.

[0034] Barrel group 16 is quickly dismountable from between sidewalls 73on receiver 14 by the operation of a barrel release trigger 76. Asbetter seen in FIG. 8a, trigger 76 is slidably mounted on pin 76 a. Pin76 a is immediately forward of trigger housing 68. Release trigger 76has an elongated aperture 76 b through each of two bifurcated sides 78.Aperture 76 b permits slidable movement of release trigger 76 indirection rearwardly past trigger guard 68. Trigger 76 is resilientlyurged forwardly, by a spring or other similar well known means (notshown). Nylon inserts 76 c are mounted on the forward upper surface 76 dof trigger 76. Inserts 76 c provide frictionless bearing surfacesbetween surface 76 d and the lower surface of base 86 so that trigger 76translates smoothly parallel to base 86.

[0035] An elongated locking block 80, which is generally tee-shaped, hasan elongated slide portion 80 a and a transverse portion 80 b. A recess82 on the underside of transverse portion 80 b engages projections 84 onthe upper surface of release trigger 76. Elongated slide portion 80 aextends rearwardly into the Citori component housing between side walls64 by sliding over the base of the housing above trigger guard 68.Sliding movement of trigger 76 also slides block 80.

[0036] Receiver 14 has a lower planar base 86 between side wallextensions 64′ and 66′. Side wall extension 64′ and 66′ extend forwardlyof side walls 64 and 66 respectively and are coplanar therewith. Theysupport at their forward end a hinge pin 88.

[0037] Symmetrically positioned beneath the breech end 16 a of thebarrel 16 is locking lug 90, which has formed at its forward end ahinge-pin recess 90 a. Positioned rearwardly of lug 90 are a pair oftransversally spaced apart locking arms 92 which depend from the breechend 16 a and which have a rearwardly facing locking notch 92 a formedtherein.

[0038] Disassembly of the barrels 16 from the receiver 14 requires thatthe operator slidably move release trigger 76 rearwardly toward triggerguard 68. Engagement of projections 84 on the upper surface of trigger76 with recess 82 on the underside of transverse portion 80 b of lockingblock 80 co-operatively also moves block 80 toward trigger guard 68.This movement withdraws the forward edge 94 of transverse portion 80 bfrom engagement with locking notch 92 a formed in locking arms 92 asforward edge 94 is withdrawn into slot 75. As hinge-pin recess 90 a oflocking lug 90 is still in engagement with hinge pin 88, barrels 16 maybe rotated in a downwardly arcuate direction, in direction H, to freelocking arms 92 from base 86 of receiver 14. Once locking arms 92 arefreed, the barrels 16 may then be drawn rearwardly in a slightly upwarddirection to release recess 90 a in locking lug 90 from engagement withhinge pin 88.

[0039] A cocking wing 100 is pivotally mounted about pin 76 a withinelongate aperture 80 c of block 80 and between sides 78 of releasetrigger 76. Pin 76 a is journalled through a laterally extending hole102 in cocking wing 100. Upper end 100 a of cocking wing 100 extendsupwardly into the Citori™ component housing between side walls 64 in themanner of a conventional Citori™ cocking wing. The lower forwardlyextending end 100 b of cocking wing 100 extends through channel 75 abelow slot 75 so as to be engaged, in the manner of a conventionalCitori™ cocking wing, by the end of barrel group 16 as the barrels arepivoted about pin 88 into the closed position. Cocking wing 100 ispivoted about pin 76 a as the barrels are closed, that is, as thebarrels engage end 100 b of cocking wing 100.

[0040] As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light ofthe foregoing disclosure, many alterations and modifications arepossible in the practice of this invention without departing from thespirit or scope thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A shotgun comprising: a stock having a butt endand an opposite second end, a receiver for containing a moving partsgroup, said receiver having a rear end and a forward end and releasablymountable at said rear end by a releasable coupler to said second end ofsaid stock, a barrel group having a discharge end and an oppositeloading end, said loading end releasably mountable by a pivotablecoupler to said forward end of said receiver, wherein said moving partsgroup, when mounted in said receiver, contains all of the moving partsbetween a trigger and a firing pin in moving operation relative to saidreceiver during firing of said shotgun when said barrel and said stockare mounted to said receiver, wherein said releasable coupler includes amanually operable coupler release, said coupler release manuallyactuable so that said coupler mounts said receiver to, or demounts saidreceiver from, said stock upon tool-less, hand actuation by a user ofsaid coupler release.
 2. The shotgun of claim 1 wherein said releasablecoupler comprises a rigid elongate member releasably mountable into areceiving socket.
 3. The shotgun of claim 2 wherein said rigid elongatemember threadably mounts into said receiving socket.
 4. The shotgun ofclaim 2 wherein said receiving socket is a rigid tubular membermountable into a bore in said second end of said stock, and wherein saidrigid elongate member is mountable to said rear end of said receiver soas to cantilever said rigid elongate member from said rear end of saidreceiver into co-axial alignment with said tubular member when saidtubular member is mounted to said stock and said stock is mounted tosaid receiver.
 5. The shotgun of claim 4 wherein said rigid elongatemember is a bolt-like member threadably mountable to said tubularmember.
 6. The shotgun of claim 5 wherein said bolt-like member is abolt having interrupted thread, said bolt having oppositely disposedparallel planar lands along thread-disengaging portions of a length ofsaid bolt, said lands extending contiguously between oppositely disposedinterrupted thread surfaces along thread-engaging portions of saidlength of said bolt, and wherein said tubular member has an interruptedthread inner surface for threaded engagement with said thread-engagingportions of said bolt, said tubular member having apertures therein,said apertures aligned and sized so that as said bolt is rotatedrelative to said tubular member while in threaded engagement with saidtubular member, said thread-engaging portions are rotated out of threadengaging radial alignment with said interrupted thread inner surface ofsaid tubular member and into radial alignment with said apertures insaid threaded walls, thereby aligning said thread-disengaging portionsof said bolt with said interrupted thread inner surfaces, whereby saidbolt is disengaged from said tubular member and may be withdrawntherefrom.
 7. A shotgun receiver for mounting to: a stock having a buttend and an opposite second end, and for mounting to a barrel grouphaving a discharge end and an opposite loading end, said loading endreleasably mountable by a pivotable coupler to said forward end of saidreceiver, said receiver comprising a moving parts group and a releasablecoupler, said receiver having a rear end and a forward end andreleasably mountable at said rear end by said releasable coupler to saidsecond end of said stock, wherein said moving parts group, when mountedin said receiver, contains all of the moving parts between a trigger anda firing pin in moving operation relative to said receiver during firingof said shotgun when said barrel and said stock are mounted to saidreceiver, wherein said releasable coupler includes a manually operablecoupler release, said coupler release manually actuable so that saidcoupler mounts said receiver to, or demounts said receiver from, saidstock upon tool-less, hand actuation by a user of said coupler release.8. The shotgun receiver of claim 7 wherein said releasable couplercomprises a rigid elongate member releasably mountable into a receivingsocket.
 9. The shotgun receiver of claim 8 wherein said rigid elongatemember threadably mounts into said receiving socket.
 10. The shotgunreceiver of claim 8 wherein said receiving socket is a rigid tubularmember mountable into a bore in said second end of said stock, andwherein said rigid elongate member is mountable to said rear end of saidreceiver so as to cantilever said rigid elongate member from said rearend of said receiver into co-axial alignment with said tubular memberwhen said tubular member is mounted to said stock and said stock ismounted to said receiver.
 11. The shotgun receiver of claim 10 whereinsaid rigid elongate member is a bolt-like member threadably mountable tosaid tubular member.
 12. The shotgun receiver of claim 11 wherein saidbolt-like member is a bolt having interrupted thread, said bolt havingoppositely disposed parallel planar lands along thread-disengagingportions of a length of said bolt, said lands extending contiguouslybetween oppositely disposed interrupted thread surfaces alongthread-engaging portions of said length of said bolt, and wherein saidtubular member has an interrupted thread inner surface for threadedengagement with said thread-engaging portions of said bolt, said tubularmember having apertures therein, said apertures aligned and sized sothat as said bolt is rotated relative to said tubular member while inthreaded engagement with said tubular member, said thread-engagingportions are rotated out of thread engaging radial alignment with saidinterrupted thread inner surface of said tubular member and into radialalignment with said apertures in said threaded walls, thereby aligningsaid thread-disengaging portions of said bolt with said interruptedthread inner surfaces, whereby said bolt is disengaged from said tubularmember and may be withdrawn therefrom.
 13. The shotgun of claim 1wherein said receiver further comprises a low-locking barrel grouprelease latch mounted to a low side of said receiver, said low side ofsaid receiver corresponding to a trigger side of said receiver, saidrelease latch cooperating with a locking mechanism on said barrel groupfor releasable locking of said barrel group on said pivotable couplerinto firing engagement with said firing pin.
 14. The shotgun of claim 13wherein said release latch has a latch actuating trigger mounted to saidlow side of said receiver so as to extend therefrom for manual actuationby a user.
 15. The shotgun of claim 14 wherein said latch actuatingtrigger is mounted adjacent a trigger guard of said receiver.
 16. Theshotgun of claim 15 wherein said latch actuating trigger is slidablymounted to said low side of said receiver.
 17. The shotgun receiver ofclaim 7 wherein said receiver further comprises a low-locking barrelgroup release latch mounted to a low side of said receiver, said lowside of said receiver corresponding to a trigger side of said receiver,said release latch cooperating with a locking mechanism on said barrelgroup for releasable locking of said barrel group on said pivotablecoupler into firing engagement with said firing pin.
 18. The shotgunreceiver of claim 17 wherein said release latch has a latch actuatingtrigger mounted to said low side of said receiver so as to extendtherefrom for manual actuation by a user.
 19. The shotgun receiver ofclaim 18 wherein said latch actuating trigger is mounted adjacent atrigger guard of said receiver.
 20. The shotgun receiver of claim 19wherein said latch actuating trigger is slidably mounted to said lowside of said receiver.
 21. The shotgun of claim 1 wherein said butt endof said stock has a slide channel formed therein in generally co-planaralignment with a longitudinal axis of a barrel of said barrel group,said stock further comprising a recoil absorbing slide resilientlyslidably mounted in said slide channel, said slide having a shoulder padmounted at an exposed end of said slide, said exposed end protrudingfrom said butt end, said slide having an upper portion extending fromsaid slide channel along an upper surface of said stock, generallyopposite a handgrip of said stock, a slide cover member mounted to saidslide and extending generally the length of said stock and along saidupper surface of said stock, said slide cover for sliding over saidupper surface of said stock as said slide slides in said slide channelso as to absorb recoil upon firing of said shotgun.
 22. The shotgun ofclaim 21 further comprising a rigid insert slidable over an exposedportion of said exposed end of said slide when said slide is fullyextended from said butt end of said stock so as to disable operation ofsaid slide.